Immortality??

 A lot of islanders aren’t great at telling light-skinned foreigners apart. They just aren’t used to seeing many of us and so often get us confused for each other. Sometimes it is completely understandable— people of similar heights and hair color. Sometimes one is tall, the other is short, one is blond, the other brunette and you wonder where the confusion comes from. We usually just correct them (at least the first time) or just politely wave at the wrong greeting in hopes of representing the other person well.

Our sons- know which is which?

 I’m convinced that only a small group of islanders can tell our two boys apart (though to be fair, even other foreigners get them confused).

Then there is Megan and our daughter. Since she was little, people have always commented on how much she looks like Megan. One old teammate persisted in calling her “little Megan” instead of by her given name. Generally our daughter is very good natured about it. It annoys her a little and every once in awhile she’ll give an eye-roll in response to a comment. But other  times she’ll laugh and even talk about it as an anecdote.

Megan & our daughter

When our daughter got glasses, she chose ones that were shaped like Megan’s, increasing the comments. Then she hit her growth spurt. She’s now as tall as an adult. She wears the traditional outer-wrap of a woman.

“I saw your daughter yesterday. She’s grown! It’s like it’s you walking around. I think that is so great when a child looks just like you! Because then it’s like you never die! Because your likeness is still walking around and whenever people see them it is like they are seeing you!”

The shopkeeper who went on this little rant kept it up for quite some time, repeating the idea again several times. She talked about different scenarios, like at a wedding or other event after you had died. If your look-alike is there it is like you are there because everyone will see them and think of you and remember you. She was sincerely happy for Megan, happy that she had this blessing, this slice of immortality, all in a look-alike daughter. “It’s like you’ll never die!”

Megan just smiled and paid for her flour, slightly puzzled and amused by this perspective. Later as we talked about it, we were struck by the emphasis she had placed on being seen and remembered, like that was what being alive was about, being a visible part of community. It also struck us as a little sad for the look-alike— can they ever be their own person in such a small community or will their lives always be tied to their predecessor?

Makes you hope that your look-alike (whether older or younger than you) is a good person, since they will undoubtedly be representing you whether you like it or not. (A reason why we are always on our best behavior when someone we don’t know greets us warmly— who knows who we are representing in that moment?)

Makes you think about God making us in his own image. Was He as excited as this woman is, by the idea that with His image-bearers walking around that there was no way that He could be forgotten?

Tom the birthday boy

PRAYERS ANSWERED
All of our teammates (except one) have returned safely from various travels. Our two medical teammates had good homestays with local families on the far-side of the island, making connections that will hopefully help them to build relationships when they move there. Tom had his birthday today! We were happy to celebrate with him and are very thankful for his 43 years! Elewa and her husband have made it back and have a new diagnosis that will hopefully help them get his health under control, easing her mind and giving him a better standard of living than he has had lately.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
Our short-termer arrives on Wednesday. Pray that she’d make her same-day connection to our island and that her days of orientation living with us would go well. Pray also for the island family that she will be living with during her time here that she could have a positive impact in that household and learn a lot. Pray for our final teammate that is still off island as her return flights have been changed. Pray that her final days with family would not be stressed by her return travel plans. Pray for our medical teammates as they use this final week to buy what they need and pack up for their move. Pray that their new house would be ready for them! Pray for us as we continue to talk with others this week about what our future role in leadership could look like— pray for unity and clarity for all involved in these discussions. Pray for one of the men that Tom was studying with as Tom has learned that he traveled to the little island. Tom has no idea when or if he would return and no way to contact him—pray that he would continue seeking and be drawn to the Light.

Determination

 “What are your dreams?” is a question we ask our upper-level English students.  

Most of our students are in their twenties and they have high hopes of doing something great with their lives.  Yet the answers we get to this question are regrettably mundane and repetitious.  In fact, most of the time we hear one of three answers:

El-Azima and some fellow students

“I want to become a doctor.”  While this is certainly an honorable profession and excellent dream.  Unfortunately, I think most students just desire the money and prestige that comes with such a position rather than the less selfish reason of serving and healing others.  

“I want to be rich and have a big house.” This is also an understandable dream in a poor country where most people live on less than $5 a day.

“I want to go to America and finish my studies.” This one is said with a grin as if not in their wildest dream could this ever really happen.  But that’s what dreams are for, right, dreaming big?

It is a wild dream—studying in America.  Most students only barely pass high school.  Even our best English students would struggle to write a college level paper.  And, at the root of even the best student’s dreams is the money issue.

Over the years we’ve had many, many students ask what it would take to study at an American university, and for most we try to discourage them.  It is too hard, too expensive and not a real possibility.  Often just a discussion of the amounts of money required and the tests and hoops one would need to jump through are enough to scare people off.  If they still push, we send them to a few web sites, articles that explain what is involved in applying to American universities.  Usually we don’t hear from them again. So in short, we’ve never seriously helped anyone apply to schools in the US.  But for the past two weeks I’ve been helping a young man do just that.  

El-Azima is determined.  He is bright—perhaps not the brightest student I’ve ever taught, but certainly up there.  He has done quite a lot with very little and that is commendable.  But what really sets him apart is his determination and his faith that studying in the US is a real possibility.

Tom with emerging teachers in El-Azima's village

It’s been more than 20 years since I applied to college, but the process certainly hasn’t gotten much easier, except for the fact that you can do it all online—a boon for international students.  So together we’ve waded through the piles of questions and forms necessary to apply.  El-Azima’s intent is unwavering.  He writes essays, answers obscure questions, calls people on the phone, and finds a way forward.

One of the roadblocks has been the school guidance counselor.  It is the guidance counselor’s job to send school transcripts and a recommendation.  El-Azima’s counselor is behind him, willing to help him in any way he can—but the older man doesn’t even have an email address and doesn’t speak English.  So El-Azima has to do all the work—create an email account for the counselor (with his permission), and send all the transcripts and recommendations in his name.  Does this sound a little sketchy to you?  Me too.  But then again, what choice does he have—and the counselor is happy to vouch for him.

Then there are financial aid forms to fill out.  For about 2 hours last week we worked together to fill out financial aid forms.  It felt like a nonsensical exercise—How many ways can a person say they are poor?  His father is a farmer, his mother sells the produce in the market.  They have no income.  Again and again we answered ‘no’ or ‘zero’ to questions about possible assets, savings or funds.  We told them the details of his 9 siblings—El-Azima calling family members on the phone to get their correct birth dates—who are in various levels of school or unemployment.  It was ridiculous, but finally we reached the end of the questions and hit the submit button.  It was at that point we were told to pay a $9 application fee and $16 per school.  I felt my heart sink.  He barely has money to get a taxi into town, let alone pay 100 times that in application fees—and this is for financial aid!  You have to pay for the application for financial aid???

But El-Azima is undaunted.  “I’ll find the money somehow,” he tells me.  And maybe he will.  I remind him again, that this is what it will be like.  There will be lots of fees—the airline ticket alone is thousands of dollars.  Then there will books, clothes, housing—all of it really expensive in the US.  How will he afford it?  It’s going to be really hard.  But El-Azima is undeterred.  With a smile he says, “Yes, but it will be worth it.”  

While we don’t carry his confidence that it will, we do what we can to be both realistic and supportive. Who knows? Maybe his dreams will come true.

Our youngest & oldest on river hike

PRAYERS ANSWERED
Some of our teammates are back, the others are still (hopefully) enjoying their vacation.  We’ve taken the lessening of team responsibilities as an opportunity to go on some hikes as a family.  It’s been nice.  The October rains have been helping the weather stay a bit cooler, but we can feel the heat and humidity rising. But hot season means fruit—mangos are back!  One of the men’s groups continues to go very well.  The other group will hopefully meet again this week.  Tom had an encouraging conversation with a neighbor and sent him home with a copy of the story of Zaccheus and the plan to send him home with other stories in the future. 


PRAYERS REQUESTED
The study for one of the men’s groups is drawing to an end.  Pray for wisdom as to what to do next.  Our medical team is getting really close to launching.  They will be spending some time with local village families this week as an opportunity to experience village life first hand and to make some connections in the village before moving there at the end of the month.  Pray for good health, good bonding, and good experiences.  We have a short-termer coming very soon.  Pray for her preparations and ours.  Keep praying for the divisions among brothers and sisters on the small island.  As far as we know things have yet to be resolved.

It’s All Who You Know

 The truck was piled high with 50lbs sacks of rice.  They were stacked about a dozen high, well above the sides of the truck bed and cinched down with ratchet straps.  Three guys were unloading the bags—one up in the truck bed pulling them down and two runners bringing the sacks to the storage room nearby.

Truck loaded with sacks of rice

We had been waiting for rice for a few weeks. We finished our sack, but everyone was out. So we’ve been keeping an eye out for the return of rice.

“So there’s rice now?”  Tom said. The man looked at Tom and smiled, “Nope.  It’s all gone.  There’s none at all.”  Tom walked home empty handed.

One of the results of the COVID pandemic has been regular shortages on the islands.  The pandemic reduced the merchant marine workforce.  This in turn, reduced the number of cargo ships and raised the cost of shipping worldwide.  On islands where most of the goods are imported, this has had a toll.  Prices of goods have gone up and regular shortages have resulted.  These shortages seem to only last a few months or so.  No one is starving. But it is disruptive to normal life.  For example, rice—islanders eat a lot of rice.  They can get by without it, but they like their rice—and it’s cheap.  A 50lbs bag costs about $17.  

Tom with our friend who gave us the rice connection!

Flour is another thing that’s run short.  We had a complete shortage a bit ago and then a small shipment came in, but now it’s low again.  The other day Megan went out looking for flour.  All the local shops were out, but then a neighbor called her over and said in a whisper, “Ma Nganu has flour.”  So Megan went over to Ma Nganu’s and asked,  “Do you have any flour?”  Ma Nganu’s eyes got shifty as she looked around the street and quickly ushered Megan into the shop and shut the door behind them.  Then went over to the corner where, hidden under a tarp she had her sack of flour.  She measured some out for Megan and telling her all the random people from far-off neighborhoods who had come asking for flour. “This flour is only for neighborhood people, for my people,” she said,  “I don’t want strangers coming and taking it all away.”

Success! We have rice!

Back to the rice—why did the guy say there was no rice while bag after bag was hefted into the store room?  It was all claimed.  He had his people to whom he would sell, and Tom was not one of his people.

A few days later, Tom was in a car with two of his friends and noticed a motorcycle with a bag of rice on the back.  He shared with his friends his story about the truck full of rice and the man saying there was none.  “How many sacks do you need?” his friend asked.  Tom let him know that one sack was all he was looking for—for our family, one sack lasts months.  His friend said, “I’ll ask my brother-in-law.”  

A few days later Tom’s friend calls him on the phone.  “I’ve got a sack of rice for you.  Can you come right now?”  Tom headed right out the door, met his friend on the street and walked over to the very same store room and the very same man who had denied him rice the week before.  Quietly, Tom was ushered into the store room.  About twenty sacks of rice still remained.  Tom paid for one and brought it home.  On his walk home with the rice sack, his neighbors smiled mischievous grins, “Congratulations! You found some rice!”  

PRAYERS ANSWERED
We got a sack of rice! Our teammates who have traveled made it safely to their destinations and we hope are having restful breaks. The women’s gathering happened though a much smaller group than normal— praying that next month will be a big group again. Elewa’s daughter was feeling better by the time Elewa and her husband traveled. The translation project had some very good checking sessions this past week and made encouraging progress!  Tom’s 2 men’s groups continue to meet and have encouraging developments as they interact with the word.  Our colleague’s son who had emergency brain surgery is out of the hospital and recovering well so far.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
We have had some disruptions to our future plans— pray for us as we coordinate with teammates and others to make new plans. We are trying to be open to new models for the future, pray for guidance as we think about possibilities and look to find unity with all those involved or effected. Pray that our teammates would have restful vacations this week.  Pray for the 2 men’s groups—that they would come every time, that they would invite others to join, that they would allow the words to touch their hearts and be transformed.  One of the men from these groups is interested in meeting faithful island followers.  Pray for wisdom how to do this well, and that it could happen soon.  Pray fro divisions among the fellowship on the smallest island—that problems could be resolved, forgiveness given and harmony restored.

It's Not Fair!

  It’s been a tough year for schools all over the world and the islands are no exception.  Not having the option of online learning, most students lost nearly a semester’s worth of school this year.  They tried to make up for it by going late into the summer months, but a great deal of time was still lost.

Tom helped with exams (not the Bac)

Because of this fact, while much of the world has already gone back to school, islanders are still finishing up the previous school year and plan a late start of the new school year at the end of October.  For most island students, September has been vacation time, but since they use the French education system, there are 3 sets of students who don’t get a break.  They are the American equivalents of 6th graders, 8th graders and 12 graders.  For each of these grades an intense, multi-day exam is required in order to move to the next class.  The hardest of these is the exam for the 12 graders.  Known as the International Baccalaureate or “the Bac” for short, it is a culmination of everything students have learned and is the one requirement in order to enter university.  Without a passing grade on the Bac, further education is at an end.  (We’ve written about the Bac before, so if you want to get the full briefing check out this old blog.)

So we knew, with the difficulties of schooling this past year, that Bac results would probably be lower than usual, and not surprisingly they were.  Very low.  According to one website only 5% passed outright—extremely low even for the islands.  Unfortunately, we know personally of many students who didn’t pass.

Not surprisingly, islanders are upset about this.  And perhaps in a very human way they are looking to save face, so most of the blame has not gone to COVID, but rather to the minister of education who chose this year of all years to crack down on cheating.

Pretty place to have exams

We have been told that it is really quite unfair, over the top, and bad for morale.  You see this year the students were spaced a full meter apart, with designated seating at specifically spaced desks.  In each room there were 2 proctors instead of 1.  The proctors were instructed to roam the classroom rather than stand in one place.  And finally, no cell phones were allowed in the exam room—Outrageous!  How can anyone be expected to take exams in such an environment???  (This is the sentiment of many of our neighbors.)

How does one respond to this?  For most, I just listen politely, but with a couple of good friends I gently informed them, “You know, that’s how it works in the States.”  They were quiet for a moment and then said, “Well, maybe it is better that way, but it would have been nice if they had given us more warning.”  That made me smile.  How much warning would you need to give them?  What would you say, “Be warned, in this coming year you will actually have to study for your exams.  In this coming year you will have to know the answers without looking at your phones and without copying your neighbor’s exam.”  I imagine a politician could find a more diplomatic way of putting it.  Moreover, my guess is that he did warn people but nobody listened.  But for now he makes a very convenient fall guy.

Future student- already loves books!

Oh well, there is always hope for next year.  Better start studying…

PRAYERS ANSWERED
Our medical teammates have found a house on the south side of the island! Also the landlord seems great and has readily agreed to the improvements they have requested. This means things are on track for them to start their new lives on the south side of the island in November. Our colleagues on the big island had a scare when their 13 yr old son started suffering from headaches and vomiting. He ultimately ended up in Kenya having brain surgery to remove a cyst that had ruptured. We were all praying a lot and were so thankful that he got to Kenya with his dad, made it through surgery, and that his mom and siblings have been able to join them. Continue to pray for his recovery and for the whole family as they will need to wait a month before returning to the islands. An older island sister on the big island has returned after spending years abroad and she seems to have a heart to help the body there— we hope she can be a great encouragement to them. Our colleague on the small island is en route to be with her ailing mother, we are thankful that the flights opened up for her to leave without much delay. We had a good talk with our new teammate coming next month— there had been some misunderstandings across different offices but we seem have cleared everything up and gotten things moving again towards her coming to the islands.

PRAYERS REQUESTED
Elewa and her husband leave on Wednesday for his medical treatment, but in the meantime their daughter is sick. Pray that she would feel better so that they can have peace about leaving. Pray for their travels and navigating the medical system in a new country. Please pray for our group’s country leader as she works with others to think through the future years for our group on the islands and as she attends leadership meetings off island— pray for a clear way forward and for unity. Three of our teammates are traveling this week- pray for smooth travels and restful trips. There should be a women’s gathering this week on Clove Island— pray that it would happen. The translation project is doing consultant checking this week— pray for good internet connections and good discussions leading to good translations.